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Union might ask FDLE to step in Bibb probe

Published: Wednesday, February 5, 2014 at 7:13 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, February 5, 2014 at 7:13 p.m.

The internal affairs investigation of a high-ranking Marion County sheriff’s official stems from a traffic stop involving Matthew Tillander, the son of Bobby Tillander, a former bar and club owner and current owner of Florida Metal Building Services.

Maj. Tommy Bibb

The investigation, in part, will seek to determine the involvement of Maj. Tommy Bibb, head of the sheriff’s Special Investigations Bureau, in the handling of the traffic stop.

The Sheriff’s Office has declined to provide specifics about the traffic stop. But the elder Tillander, in an interview Wednesday, explained some details.

Matthew Tillander, 26, was stopped by Deputy Calvin Batts early Jan. 18 at West County Road 326 and North U.S. 441. He was suspected of speeding, but the stop turned into an investigation of a possible DUI.

Bobby Tillander said he was awakened with a phone call between 2:30 and 3 a.m. He wouldn’t say who called, but did say it wasn’t Bibb, his son, the deputy or Sheriff Chris Blair.

The caller told Tillander that his son had been pulled over and deputies were on scene with him. He said that, as a concerned parent, he got dressed and drove to the location.

While on his way, he said, he called Bibb to ask if he could find out what was going on and to ask if his son was OK.

Bibb, he said, called someone — he did not know who. He later overheard Bibb telling the deputy to “use your own discretion.”

“He doesn’t drink,” Tillander said of his son. “Obviously, if he was drinking, he should go to jail.”

He said that when he arrived at the location, his son did not appear to be intoxicated.

Bobby Tillander said he did not ever speak with Blair. There was no arrest. There is no indication in the court clerk’s records that the younger Tillander received any ticket.

Tillander said Matthew’s girlfriend took his son home from the scene.

Tillander said he and the deputy then talked and Batts told him, “Everyone deserves a break.”

“Then I left,” Bobby Tillander said.

Blair said he was aware of the traffic stop. He later heard that questions were being raised about the handling. He said he reviewed a video of the stop taken by the dashboard camera. That prompted him to launch an internal investigation for a possible code of conduct violation.

James Preston, president of the Florida Fraternal Order of Police, which represents approximately 20,000 law enforcement officers, including those at the Sheriff’s Office, said his organization is considering asking Gov. Rick Scott to assign the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to conduct an investigation into possible abuse of office and official misconduct.

Preston said he is basing his reasoning on the circumstances surrounding the stop, and how Bibb called the deputy at 3 a.m.

“Did he (Bibb) interfere with this investigation?” Preston asked.

Preston said that according to what he was told, Bibb told the deputy he had called the sheriff.

“If the sheriff himself is involved in any degree, then he cannot investigate himself. It has to be independently investigated,” Preston said.

Records show that during the Republican 2012 primary for sheriff, Tillander’s family donated $2,629 to Blair’s campaign.

When asked if anything about the case with Matthew Tillander amounted to political favoritism, Blair emphatically said, “That’s false, absolutely not.”

Bobby Tillander agreed.

“That’s BS. Sheriff Chris Blair has way more integrity than that. If $2,600 buys you political payback, then I’m way down the totting board,” Tillander said.

Tillander said neither he nor his son had been notified by the Sheriff’s Office about the internal affairs investigation.

Bibb, one of Blair’s longtime supporters and a trusted adviser, is continuing to work during the probe. Bibb has declined comment.

Preston questioned why Bibb was not suspended during the investigation. If the case involved a deputy, he or she would have been suspended with pay until internal affairs completed its work, he said.

Blair said there is no favoritism in Bibb’s case. The status of the person under investigation depends, he said, on multiple factors, such as the status of the complaint and whether it involved a use of force or a physical altercation.

“Every situation is different,” Blair said.

Bibb was hired in 1985 as a deputy second class. He became an assistant bureau chief under Blair while in the Special Investigations Bureau and also worked in internal affairs, as a detective, and as head of the agency’s Cargo Task Force.

Bibb retired several years ago, but returned to the Sheriff’s Office when Blair was elected. His annual salary is $105,450, which is at the top of the pay scale.

In terms of discussing the internal investigation, Capt. James Pogue, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, said, “We’re prohibited from responding due to a pending ongoing internal investigation.”

<p>The internal affairs investigation of a high-ranking Marion County sheriff's official stems from a traffic stop involving Matthew Tillander, the son of Bobby Tillander, a former bar and club owner and current owner of Florida Metal Building Services.</p><p>The investigation, in part, will seek to determine the involvement of Maj. Tommy Bibb, head of the sheriff's Special Investigations Bureau, in the handling of the traffic stop.</p><p>The Sheriff's Office has declined to provide specifics about the traffic stop. But the elder Tillander, in an interview Wednesday, explained some details.</p><p>Matthew Tillander, 26, was stopped by Deputy Calvin Batts early Jan. 18 at West County Road 326 and North U.S. 441. He was suspected of speeding, but the stop turned into an investigation of a possible DUI.</p><p>Bobby Tillander said he was awakened with a phone call between 2:30 and 3 a.m. He wouldn't say who called, but did say it wasn't Bibb, his son, the deputy or Sheriff Chris Blair.</p><p>The caller told Tillander that his son had been pulled over and deputies were on scene with him. He said that, as a concerned parent, he got dressed and drove to the location.</p><p>While on his way, he said, he called Bibb to ask if he could find out what was going on and to ask if his son was OK.</p><p>Bibb, he said, called someone — he did not know who. He later overheard Bibb telling the deputy to “use your own discretion.”</p><p>“He doesn't drink,” Tillander said of his son. “Obviously, if he was drinking, he should go to jail.”</p><p>He said that when he arrived at the location, his son did not appear to be intoxicated.</p><p>Bobby Tillander said he did not ever speak with Blair. There was no arrest. There is no indication in the court clerk's records that the younger Tillander received any ticket.</p><p>Tillander said Matthew's girlfriend took his son home from the scene.</p><p>Tillander said he and the deputy then talked and Batts told him, “Everyone deserves a break.”</p><p>“Then I left,” Bobby Tillander said.</p><p>Blair said he was aware of the traffic stop. He later heard that questions were being raised about the handling. He said he reviewed a video of the stop taken by the dashboard camera. That prompted him to launch an internal investigation for a possible code of conduct violation.</p><p>James Preston, president of the Florida Fraternal Order of Police, which represents approximately 20,000 law enforcement officers, including those at the Sheriff's Office, said his organization is considering asking Gov. Rick Scott to assign the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to conduct an investigation into possible abuse of office and official misconduct.</p><p>Preston said he is basing his reasoning on the circumstances surrounding the stop, and how Bibb called the deputy at 3 a.m.</p><p>“Did he (Bibb) interfere with this investigation?” Preston asked.</p><p>Preston said that according to what he was told, Bibb told the deputy he had called the sheriff.</p><p>“If the sheriff himself is involved in any degree, then he cannot investigate himself. It has to be independently investigated,” Preston said.</p><p>Records show that during the Republican 2012 primary for sheriff, Tillander's family donated $2,629 to Blair's campaign.</p><p>When asked if anything about the case with Matthew Tillander amounted to political favoritism, Blair emphatically said, “That's false, absolutely not.”</p><p>Bobby Tillander agreed.</p><p>“That's BS. Sheriff Chris Blair has way more integrity than that. If $2,600 buys you political payback, then I'm way down the totting board,” Tillander said.</p><p>Tillander said neither he nor his son had been notified by the Sheriff's Office about the internal affairs investigation.</p><p>Bibb, one of Blair's longtime supporters and a trusted adviser, is continuing to work during the probe. Bibb has declined comment.</p><p>Preston questioned why Bibb was not suspended during the investigation. If the case involved a deputy, he or she would have been suspended with pay until internal affairs completed its work, he said.</p><p>Blair said there is no favoritism in Bibb's case. The status of the person under investigation depends, he said, on multiple factors, such as the status of the complaint and whether it involved a use of force or a physical altercation.</p><p>“Every situation is different,” Blair said.</p><p>Bibb was hired in 1985 as a deputy second class. He became an assistant bureau chief under Blair while in the Special Investigations Bureau and also worked in internal affairs, as a detective, and as head of the agency's Cargo Task Force.</p><p>Bibb retired several years ago, but returned to the Sheriff's Office when Blair was elected. His annual salary is $105,450, which is at the top of the pay scale.</p><p>In terms of discussing the internal investigation, Capt. James Pogue, spokesman for the Sheriff's Office, said, “We're prohibited from responding due to a pending ongoing internal investigation.”</p>